Water in the Basement

Posted by: Gary from Edmonton

7/20/2011 at 12:38:15 PM

I am building my own house to live in. This is the first time I've built a house and I've run into a problem that has help up progress on my project. There is water sitting in my basement and it will not dry out. The plumbing ground works are done but will not get passed until the water under the pipes is gone. I cannot even pour cement in the basement until it dries out. I've had a fan blowing for several weeks now and nothing! The water level isn't high, at all but there's just enough to make the basement very muddy and sloppy. Anyone run into this problem before or have any advice on this situation?

Hi Gary! Having water in the basement as you build is not uncommon. However, you do need to get that water under control. Have you put in your weeping tile and plenty of gravel around your footing before backfilling? Make sure that your weeping tile is working and draining away from the house. Also it is a good idea to slope all ground outside away from the house as much as possible to help control the water. Also all downspouts should be directed away from the house as well. This is a perfect time too to consider using blueskin or platoon waterproofing on the outside of the foundation to seal that foundation up for good. You will never have any water issues after that. But at the very least makes sure your drains are free and clear. You might have an underground spring running there too which will have to be dealt with. Hope this helped you. Good luck!

Brent

Gary in Edmonton

7/20/2011 at 3:25:57 PM

Hi Brent. Thank you for your response and yes it was helpful, although I think many of things you mentioned I should have done before my current point in the building process! How do I tell if my weeping tile is draining properly if the foundation is in and already backfilled?

At this point, the foundation is in, the house is framed and insulated on the outside. Heating is done on the main and upper floors. Plumbing is complete on all levels (just needs to pass the inspection). At this point, I'm thinking to get my heating guy to hang the furnace rather than waiting for the concrete to be poured first. This will help dry the basement and help get my project moving along! Is this a good idea? Am I still able to use the waterproofing methods on the outside of the foundation at this point in the construction process?

After I installed the sump pump, no new water is entering the house. But the water that was left from before isn't going away...

If all the weeping tile is done , and why not just install the sump pit, and throw in the sump pump in, that should get rid of most of the water. Enough so you could put your gravel and poly down, then get the basement floor poured.

There will be water underneath you basement floor most of the time, and that's why you have weeping tile and a sump pit to keep the water from building up past you basement floor.

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